Yule Sign Tears Appear To Come From Virgin Mary`s Eyes On Icon.

CHICAGO -- Parishioners of the St. Nicholas Albanian Orthodox Church will remember the Christmas season of 1986 for years to come.

This is the year that an unexplained phenomenon, the apparent weeping of a picture of the Virgin Mary, has made their small church a focal point for Christians throughout the Chicago area.

Crowds have been building steadily since the moisture on the icon, a depiction of Mary holding the baby Jesus painted on canvas and mounted on wood, first was spotted Saturday, the St. Nicholas feast day, by the senior priest, Rev. Philip Koufos, and several parishioners.

As word spreads, first by word of mouth and then through the mass media, thousands have made the pilgrimage to the church, on North Narragansett Avenue, which can barely seat its own membership of 250.

It has put a tremendous burden on the congregation, which is keeping its doors open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. to accommodate the crowds.

``Everyone is pitching in; already she is working her wonders,`` said Father Koufos, commenting on the parishioners who have volunteered to handle the doors, sell candles and usher the quiet throngs.

``That`s the least we can do. I think it`s a miracle that should be shared throughout the world,`` said Dick Zurawski, whose wife, Lillian, is a church member. Zurawski was manning the door Thursday morning.

Father Koufos said the crowds have been ``unbelievable,`` but added that ``people have been very reverent and very quiet and very sober.``

The icon, part of a highly decorative wall, the iconostasis, behind which is the altar at the front of the church, continued Thursday to show moisture around both eyes of the picture of Mary and around her hand. Streaks of moisture ran down to cotton wadding placed on the floor. An incense burner, poinsettia plants, flower arrangements and candles surround the icon, serving as much as a barrier to it as a homage.

As the curious and faithful passed in front, many crossed themselves, said silent prayers, kissed a copy of the picture and wept softly. Some left change and $1 and $5 bills on a partition, although Father Koufos said, ``We do not want money. This church was paid off years ago. We don`t want a carnival. We take this so seriously. We`re humbled by it.``

The Albanian church is part of the Greek Orthodox Diocese of Chicago, which issued a statement saying that reverence shown icons ``is not veneration of the wood or paint but veneration of that person or sacred event depicted on the icon.``